Snow White with the Red Hair
Episode 22: “The Temperature of a Smile, a Cherished Place”

Artemis: Is it just me, or is Izana’s characterisation coming across as wildly inconsistent? I get that there’s far more to the guy than a coldly calculating monarch, and I never once doubted that he had his brother’s best interests at heart – but to suddenly claim that he’s always been soft on Zen, that he finds Zen fun to talk to, and that he’s prepared to fully back Zen in his relationship with Shirayuki? Sorry, but that just seems totally at odds with everything we’ve seen of the man thus far, and felt like a major burr in what was otherwise a pretty good episode. We got more info on Kiki in two minutes that we’ve had in nearly two whole seasons after all, and it came in the form of some wonderfully funny flashbacks that helped showcase yet again just how well the characters of Snow White function as an overall cast. I was also thrilled to see more proof (not that we needed it) that the romance between Zen and Shirayuki is one that’s built solidly on trust, turning what would have been easy fodder for melodrama and hysterics in any other series into simply another sweet moment with one of the most well-adjusted anime couples of all time.

Mr. Osomatsu – Someone’s been reading fan fiction on Tumblr

Mr. Osomatsu
Episode 23: “Kerosene / Dayon Tribe”

Jel: This was arguably the strangest episode yet, and for this show that is saying a lot. I love the tension in the first half. The brothers are so on edge at this point that even the most mundane scenario can blow up into a tense, psychological struggle. Add in some deadpan face jokes and it was all pretty hilarious. Interesting they decided to keep the ball rolling and transition to the next part real time, which is when things get really, really weird. I still can’t decide how much I actually enjoyed it, but the Dayon tribe was certainly a spectacle. I will never be able to burn the image of Ichimatsu trying to rip off Dayon Karamatsu’s comically large endowment with a giant pair of pliers out of my mind. There was actually a pretty significant message about growing up in there, but it was heard to stomach over all the crying and yelling. At this point nothing with this show would surprise me, so I’m just going to move on prepare for whatever madness they have in store for the final episodes.

Jel: It’s kind of odd to end a season on 10 episodes but this might be the rare instance where an anime knows when it’s the right time to make an exit. The final battle of season 1 was perfectly entertaining, if maybe a bit predictable, with everyone getting a moment to shine. I particularly appreciated Megumin making explosion magic look the way it should, mushroom cloud and all. The final scene leaves us perfectly set up for the recently announced season 2, and I’m kind of ambivalent on it. On the one hand I appreciate this plucky little show that came from nowhere and I’d say it’s unique spin on the “trapped in a game” setting is more good than bad. On the other hand, it wasn’t so overwhelmingly great that I’m excited for more. I’ll definitely check it out though, so here’s hoping our band of super powered weirdos can be even better when they return.

Ojisan and Marshmallow – Pretty sure this is illegal

Ojisan and Marshmallow
Episode 11: “Hot Springs Trip and Marshmallow”

Jel: This was NOT the turn of events I was expecting. I would have much preferred having Mioko permanently out of the picture and giving Wakabayashi and Hige a chance to sort things out for themselves. That said, a ridiculous rescue mission with the help of the factory women is probably more appropriate for this show. Surprisingly they did not address Hige’s “family” at any point, and while it does seem to distress Wakabayashi that doesn’t seem to be slowing her down. Can they tie up all this tension in one 7 minute episode? We’ll have to see.

Sekko Boys
Episode 11: “The Return of the Prodigal Son”

Jel: This episode started out great but was slightly disappointing in that it did not get nearly crazy enough for my tastes. I mean, they literally declare “to hell with making sense” and then everything they do kind of makes sense. That said, I guess they were going for more of an emotional punch as Isshie’s dilemma of choosing the practical path versus what she wants to do was legit Real Talk. Who’d have thought we’d get such an on point message from this show? Not sure how things will wrap up next week, but I’ll be sad to see this little show end.

Dagashi Kashi – Is this what Christmas in Japan looks like?

Dagashi Kashi
Episode 10: “That’s Dagashi!”

Jel: If I had to pick one plot line for a multipe episode run I would not have guessed “Hotaru gets a canker sore” would be the one to get the green light. This two part epic has actually been pretty entertaining, and having a common thread between several segments helps reign in some of the show’s previous randomness. Both episodes have really let the chemistry of the cast shine as we get to see interactions between all of them. I really like the scenes with To and Hotaru together as they are both passionate weirdos, and To managed to play a role in this episode with out perving out one bit. Maybe those two should pair up and let the more down to Earth Saya have wet blanket Coconuts… wait, did I just solve the great Best Girl shipping war of 2016? I think I did.

BBK/BRNK
Episode 11: “The Immortal Girl”

Iro: Who would have thought a show like BBK would devote time to giving its villains and enemies character depth? We’ve known for a while that something weird has been going on with Reoko, but none of us expected the cause to be so, well… noble? She’s still a psychotic despot, but we’re shown that this was out of necessity to quell the danger of wild Buranki. And after only a few episodes with crazy hammer-and-sickle twins fawning over their brother, it works surprisingly well to have one of the pair decide to rebel. Slightly less effective is Souya stepping in to protect Kogane (and getting shanked in the back for his trouble), which seems a bit out-of-nowhere, but it serves as a good opportunity to – as mentioned above – add character depth to both him and Arabashiri. Anyway, with full-limbed Entei crashing the party for a cliffhanger, we’re pretty well geared up for a cour-ending climax. I’m looking forward to it.

Durararararara – Moron with a gun

Durarara X2 The Third Arc
Episode 35: “Life is an Unknown Course”

Iro: Shit’s getting real, and I still can’t bring myself to care. At least, not about Mikado and Masaomi. Granted, there is some impressive voice work going on with Masaomi’s increasingly frantic pleading and Mikado’s cold detachment, but it all feels like a petty argument that wouldn’t be here in the first place if either of them weren’t morons. Kujiragi and Shinra’s conversation is similarly dull, with Kujiragi revealing her motive as just wanting to be loved, which is about as dumb as this show has ever gotten. It wasn’t all bad this week, though: we do at least have a winner of a scene with scumbag Izumii (voiced by Glorio favorite Atsushi Imaroka in his fully hammy glory) attacking the party van crew only for Walker to show up with a fucking flamethrower, and we get the deepest of Baccano! cuts with Mikado somehow acquiring a version of Goose’s punch-gun-glove from the Flying Pussyfoot incident. Gosh, remember how much better that show was?

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4 thoughts on “The Roundup: Winter 2016 Volume 10”

Another world inside Dayon. Weird indeed. I found the seemless transition to a “new” segment really well done. It seems this could play well if they used it more. Then agian why fuck with a winning formula?

It was a fitting end to s01 of Konosuba, laughs were had and we even get a second season. I didn’t expect much but it was still amusing. The creator of the Destroyer’s journal/flashback shrugging everything off made me laugh pretty hard. “oh well”. Also “LaLatina”..

I noticed you missed Rakogu, was Artemis not around? It was a lovely reunion for Kiku and Sukeroku and it seems our least favorie Geisha is going to make her return. Incoming drama, can’t wait!

BBK: I think Im watching too many shows cause I cant recall the details. But ya looking forward to a Buranki throwdown.

In the end I have to wonder if Konosuba was actually good or I just enjoyed it because my expectations were so incredibly low for it. I definitely had some great parts and fun ideas, so I’m at least on board for a little more.

Unfortunately Aretemis wasn’t available for Rakugo this week, but everything I’m hearing from the past couple episodes is making me curious if I should have stuck with it. Not sure I would have had the patience to make it this far.

Regarding Rakugo: It’s top of my list for Winter. Great depth and art. It reminds me a bit of Uchouten Kazoku in the fact it lacks the action and has lots of great dialogue and development. Weird comparison I know.

Yeah, sorry, I was away from home for a few days and so wasn’t able to cover anything that aired over the weekend. I did of course watch Rakugo Shinjuu when I got back though, and I’ll be sure to get back to covering it again in the coming Roundup.

I think I see where you’re coming from when you make that comparison between it and Uchouten Kazoku (incidentally one of the only P.A.Works shows I’ve ever thoroughly enjoyed). I’d say that both are very precise shows that clearly put a lot of emphasis on what goes on beneath the surface rather than on the direct, onscreen ‘action’.